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Background Perinatal mortality remains high globally and remains an important indicator of the quality of a health care system. To reduce this mortality, it is important to provide the recommended care during the perinatal period. We assessed the prevalence and factors associated with appropriate perinatal care (antenatal, intrapartum, and postpartum) in Bunyoro region, Uganda. Results from this study provide valuable information on the perinatal care services and highlight areas of improvement for better perinatal outcomes. Methods A cross sectional survey was conducted among postpartum mothers attending care at three district hospitals in Bunyoro. Following consent, a questionnaire was administered to capture the participants’ demographics and data on care received was extracted from their antenatal, labour, delivery, and postpartum records using a pre-tested structured tool. The care received by women was assessed against the standard protocol established by World Health Organization (WHO). Poisson regression with robust standard errors was used to assess factors associated with appropriate postpartum care. Results A total of 872 mothers receiving care at the participating hospitals between March and June 2020 were enrolled in the study. The mean age of the mothers was 25 years (SD = 5.95). None of the mothers received appropriate antenatal or intrapartum care, and only 3.8% of the participants received appropriate postpartum care. Factors significantly associated with appropriate postpartum care included mothers being >35 years of age (adjusted prevalence ratio [aPR] = 11.9, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.8–51.4) and parity, with low parity (2–3) and multiparous (>3) mothers less likely to receive appropriate care than prime gravidas (aPR = 0.3, 95% CI 0.1–0.9 and aPR = 0.3, 95% CI 0.1–0.8 respectively). Conclusions Antenatal, intrapartum, and postpartum care received by mothers in this region remains below the standard recommended by WHO, and innovative strategies across the continuum of perinatal care need to be devised to prevent mortality among the mothers. The quality of care also needs to be balanced for all mothers irrespective of the age and parity.

BackgroundIn very young children, anaemia has been linked to increased morbidity, mortality and poor cognitive development. Although Burundi has a high burden of anaemia, which may be worsened by the high burden of malaria, little is known about the extent of the problem in very young children who are most at risk of severe disease. We estimated the prevalence, and assessed the factors associated with anaemia in children aged 6-24 months using baseline data collected as part of an on-going study evaluating the effect of Micronutrient supplementation on anaemia and cognition among children in high malaria transmission settings in Burundi.MethodsBetween February and March 2020, surveys were conducted in 498 households within the catchment area of Mukenke Health Center. One child aged 6-24 months was selected per household to participate in the survey. Following written informed consent, we administered a questionnaire to the child's primary caregiver to capture information on child's demographics, nutritional status, food intake, health (status, and morbidity and treatment-seeking practices), as well as the household markers of wealth. A physical exam was conducted, and a blood sample was collected to: 1) assess for presence of plasmodium infection using a rapid diagnosis test; 2) estimate the haemoglobin levels using a portable haemocue machine. A stool sample was also collected to examine for the presence of helminth infections.ResultsThe prevalence of anaemia was 74.3% (95% confidence interval [CI] 61.5%-84.0%), with most of the anaemic study participants classified as having moderate anaemia (59.2%). A total of 62 (12.5%) participants had positive malaria rapid diagnosis tests. Factors significantly associated with higher odds of developing anaemia included not receiving deworming medication (adjusted Odd ratio [aOR] = 3.54, 95% CI 1.79-6.99, pConclusionAnaemia is highly prevalent among young children in high malaria transmission setting. Anaemia is more prevalent among children who not dewormed and those with malaria. To prevent the long-term adverse outcomes of the anaemia in children, policy makers should focus on improving uptake of the deworming and malaria prevention programs, promote preventive interventions and improve the education of women especially in families with very young children.

BackgroundDespite overall increase in HIV testing, more men than women remain untested. In 2018, 92% of Ugandan women but only 67% of men had tested for HIV. Understanding men's needs and concerns for testing could guide delivery of HIV testing services (HTS) to them. We assessed the prevalence of testing, associated factors and men's perspectives on HIV testing in urban and peri-urban communities in Central Uganda.Methods and findingsWe conducted a parallel-convergent mixed-methods study among men in Kampala and Mpigi districts from August to September 2018. Using two-stage sampling, we selected 1340 men from Mpigi. We administered a structured questionnaire to collect data on HIV testing history, socio-demographics, self-reported HIV risk-related behaviors, barriers and facilitators to HIV testing. We also conducted 10 focus-groups with men from both districts to learn their perspectives on HIV testing. We used modified Poisson regression to assess factors associated with HIV testing and inductive thematic analysis to identify barriers and facilitators. Though 84.0% of men reported having tested for HIV, only 65.7% had tested in the past 12-months despite nearly all (96.7%) engaging in at least one HIV risk-related behavior. Men were more likely to have tested if aged 25-49 years, Catholic, with secondary or higher education and circumcised. Being married was associated with ever-testing while being widowed or divorced was associated with testing in past 12-months. Men who engaged in HIV risk-related behavior were less likely to have tested in the past 12-months. Qualitative findings showed that men varied in their perspectives about the need for testing, access to HTS and were uncertain of HIV testing and its outcomes.ConclusionsRecent HIV testing among men remains low. Modifying testing strategies to attract men in all age groups could improve testing uptake, reduce gender disparity and initiate risk reduction interventions.